The Childhood Anti-Obesity Plan
December 19th, 2006 
by Susan Harris
You’ve seen this beach babe before, my howler of a baby picture. Another one followed in the profile photo slot, showing me slightly older but still plump. Then suddenly you saw a kid up a tree, a kid who wasn’t plump at all. So what happened? I say it was gardening. Pay attention, parents of America, because some little-known secrets to the prevention of childhood obesity are about to be revealed.
First, buy a house on a good half-acre of land, preferably surrounded by lots of woods, maybe in a town near Richmond, Virginia. Start a large vegetable garden and a larger ornamental garden and assign regular gardening duties to your kids, whether th
ey like ‘em or not. But to increase their chances of enjoying their gardening chores, spend hours and hours outdoors with them tending the gardens, and fuss over the flowers and vegetables their work helped create.
Then give your kids plenty of unscheduled time for exploring those woods and engaging in lots of gardening-like activities, maybe building log forts or digging tunnels. Sure, you might not think of them as gardening activities, but they involve handling plants and dirt - the very essence of gardening. Of course, it’s important to give your kids indestructible bikes for exploring the countryside. And if you have the space and some spare change, how about a swimming pool in the backyard? Nothing fancy, of course, as long as it’s deep and cold. (In fact, it can be bare cinder blocks without even a drain in the bottom. Then every spring get the kids to drain and clean the pool themselves - it’ll be fun!!)
Of course there’s always dancing lessons and the swim team but remember, not too much scheduled time, okay? Then how about taking long walks with them, one on one. Call ‘em by the old-fashioned term - constitutionals. They’re a great time for catching up.
But back to reality? Okay, I know it’s no longer the ’50s, there’s more crime now, everybody’s busier, blah, blah, blah. I don’t care; I’m enjoying a nostalgic moment. 
I’m remembering gardening with my mom, walking with my dad, cleaning out the pool as a family, and playing badmitton after dinner. And I’m feeling pretty lucky about all that.
[Bottom photo: Bon Air, Virginia, 1958, with my cousin, now living in Seattle. Hi, Jan! Click to enlarge.]
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December 20th, 2006 at 3:23 pm
Susan…you are making me cry. All I had growing up in Atlantic City NJ was the beach to run around. WAIT A MINUTE, that’s not so bad! I might be able to dig up a decent memory here and there.
December 20th, 2006 at 7:14 pm
It wasn’t just the ’50s… I grew up in the ’80s and I had a nearly indestructible bike–we called them our “dirt bikes”–to use for roaming around the neighbor’s woods!
My neighbors two doors down are always outside with their two boys. I laugh to myself when the youngest one starts to tell stories and ask questions. And I am very appreciative when he runs over with cookies for me.
December 20th, 2006 at 7:45 pm
Yep, I think you’ve found the secret to fighting childhood obesity. Lots of parental involvement, lots of outdoor activities!
December 21st, 2006 at 11:54 am
The childhood you describe can be accomplished on smaller quarter acre lot. The proximity of the woods is crucial though. The way I eat I should be a real porker, but that kind of childhood spilled into my career and adult life.
December 21st, 2006 at 4:40 pm
I grew up on a forested half-acre just like you describe, Susan. Parents who gardened, and encouraged us (though we hardly needed it) to play outside whenever it wasn’t raining (and sometimes when it was).
Unfortunately, the way housing prices in Vancouver are, I’ll be lucky to raise my children anywhere other than a townhouse. But we’ll still try to impart the magic of the outdoors - even if that means a park, or the local hiking trails, or, especially, the garden.
December 22nd, 2006 at 2:47 pm
I grew up in the woods in a place where you had to carve space for your house out of the trees. We ran through those woods, built forts, climbed trees, or went over to the school yard to swing, play hopscotch etc. We played kickball in our backyard and road our bikes all over the place from to our little “downtown” area, the traffic circle, to out to the farms where we could sometimes score a cold chocolate milk at one of the dairy farm’s coolers. We also had lots of ponds and lakes to swim in and never went home during the days we were free to roam except for dinner, maybe lunch. My Dad was the one who would take anyone that wanted to pile into the back of the old stationwagon to go rock hunting and exploring caves and creeks and abandoned stone quarries. We never dreamt of “exercising” back then.
December 23rd, 2006 at 12:09 am
Ahh… the 50’s: the time when America emerged as a Global Military and Economic Superpower… the time when 65% of all world trade passed through American hands in one way or another. We were rich and strong. Our dollars were king!We’d just conquered the world and were busy enforcing our will across it. Yes, the 50’s were a great time to alive, in America… for some.
Hate to be a buzz kill but aside from the cash, the good old days weren’t so good. I happen to be a straight, white, protestant, middle class male. I have every reason to miss the 50’s, but I don’t. (In fairness, I wasn’t even born until 1967.)
But really, despite the intentional polarization of our people and the daily crush of strife, THESE are really pretty good days too.
Yeah… we are getting fat though. (I need to do some sit-ups myself.)
HOWEVER, I like the plan. We should give everyone a horse too. I’M SERIOUS!
Curious: is there even a one half acre parcel of buildable land for each of us now? (Remember, several million people haven’t just been killed. There are a BUNCH of us now… and more coming.)
My point: smile, things could be worse… and they will be soon… but not now.
December 23rd, 2006 at 9:19 am
Wow, and here I thought we were talking about active childhood lifestyles ,not world trade and global economics. Silly me.
December 23rd, 2006 at 9:45 am
Clerk, “buzz kill” is right - and happy holidays to you, too.
December 23rd, 2006 at 12:47 pm
sorry